Mac Use

Mac Use is agent-neutral computer use for macOS. It gives any MCP-capable agent:

• an accessibility-first managed browser;

• a visible cursor that moves to each browser action;

• an active-tab favicon badge;

• a native menu-bar indicator for apps currently in use;

• a user-facing Stop Using action; and

• browser screenshots returned as standard MCP image content.

It does not choose or host an LLM. Agents keep their existing model, subscription, memory, tools, and approval system.

Install

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/CarlvinceTan/mac-use/main/install.sh | bash

The installer is user-local and does not use sudo. It downloads the source, uses an existing Node.js 24 runtime or installs a private verified copy, builds the native menu app, installs a managed browser, and prints the MCP configuration to add to the agent.

Requirements:

• macOS 13 or newer; and

• Xcode Command Line Tools.

If the command-line tools are missing, install them once with:

xcode-select --install

Related MCP server: macos-control-mcp

Connect an agent

Print the MCP configuration at any time:

"$HOME/Library/Application Support/Mac Use/bin/mac-use" mcp-config

Set MAC_USE_AGENT_ID and MAC_USE_AGENT_NAME differently for each connected agent. Agents without MCP can implement the small authenticated loopback protocol in docs/adapter-protocol.md.

Computer-use tools

• mac_begin_activity, mac_update_activity, mac_end_activity

• mac_activity_snapshot, mac_check_stop

• browser_open, browser_snapshot

• browser_click, browser_hover, browser_type, browser_fill

• browser_press, browser_screenshot, browser_end

Browser snapshots expose accessibility references such as @e1. Before a targeted action, Mac Use resolves the element bounds, animates the visible cursor to the target, waits for the extension to acknowledge its arrival, and then performs the action. The user's physical pointer is never moved.

Manage the installation

Check it:

"$HOME/Library/Application Support/Mac Use/bin/mac-use" doctor

Remove it:

"$HOME/Library/Application Support/Mac Use/bin/mac-use" uninstall

The default uninstall moves Mac Use to Trash. Add --purge for permanent removal.

Security

• Services bind only to 127.0.0.1.

• Mutations require a random local bearer token.

• Browser data stays in a dedicated local profile.

• No model credentials are read or stored.

• The one-line installer downloads only over HTTPS. Pin a release with MAC_USE_REF when reproducibility matters.

See SECURITY.md for the trust boundary.

Scope

Version 0.1 controls the managed browser and exposes activity indicators for native app controllers. It does not yet click or type in arbitrary macOS apps; an agent needs its own accessibility controller for non-browser applications.

The artwork is original and has no runtime dependency on another agent app. Rendering can vary with macOS versions.

Development

npm install
npm test
npm run test:swift
npm run build:mac

Local app builds are ad-hoc signed. Public binary releases require Developer ID signing and notarization; see docs/distribution.md.

Mac Use is MIT licensed.